Assassins and Thieves
by ObsessiveDino
Summary: Suddenly dropped onto a port, Chrome has to face several challenges to complete her task. An order from her dear father, she now has to obtain her own Hunter License. However along the way, she found herself stuck in a group unable to break free. Possibly a Killua/OC story.
1. Chapter 1

Assassins and Thieves are the Same

**Chapter 01**

The day seemed bright as the sun shined shamelessly at the highest peak of the sky, despite the winter air. It must be roughly noon, considering the position of the burning star. The dock of the city seems bustling with life. Sailors and workers paced back and forth as they carried items to their destinations. Shouts and hollers were sounded as a ship slowly docked itself on an empty space. Slowly the ship came to a haul, and a large wooden board was thrown half on the ship and on the dock to create a fairly unstable ramp. No matter the slight danger of a wobbly plank, a handful of sluggish people had exited the ship.

A child had also walked out of the ship including twenty other adults. A child stepped foot on the ground first time since a week ago. The cold and stable ground was the single very thing she was looking forward ever since she entered the wooden transportation. The very child smiled at the sight of the new and unexplored town. It's been a while since she was able to venture on her own without her father. Her acquaintance next to her wanted to ask her about her next move; but instead of worrying about her, he hummed out "Chrome, I'll be going first."

"Huh, we're not going together?" she looked at her acquaintance quizzically. The man chuckled to himself and left without a word after. The child, Chrome, frowned a bit. "Hmm, where do I go first?" She said to herself. Conveniently, a sailor noticed the child standing alone at the dock. He approached the young child and kneeled in front of her to get to her eye level.

"Hey child, are you lost?" he dropped down the two wooden planks on the ground next to him. "Are you waiting for your parents?"

Startled by the man, she took a step back with caution. Sensing no hostility from him, she smiled nervously at him. "Uhh, I'm sorry, but do you know how to get to the Hunter Exam?" she asked, biting her lip to indicate nervousness.

"What? The hunter exam?" the sailor looked confused. "Why do you need to know that? Are you planning on being a hunter?"

Chrome exhaled softly, not prepared for the question. "No, you see, Papa left home to become a hunter," she started a false story. "I need to tell him to come back home. Mama and I are lonely."

"Oh, that's why." The sailor looked down, conflicted on what to say. "I've seen that happen a lot." He looked back up at Chrome who's fidgeting with her hands. "Look, I don't think you should be looking for your father. The road to becoming a hunter is a very dangerous one."

Chrome puffed out her cheeks in frustration. "I know. Everyone on the ship told me that" she whined, "but Mama will get very very sad. I, I don't want her to get sad. So please, can you tell me where the Hunter Exam is?"

The sailor sighed at the girl's stubbornness or her whininess. "Okay, but I don't know exactly where it is, but I've seen a lot of people headed north of the town. I think they're going to participate in the Hunter Exam, but I'm not too sure. You probably should ask around before following some stranger, okay?" He picked up his planks of wood and stood back up. "I'm sorry that I can't help you more than that. Good luck in finding your father. Be careful. Like I said, it's a very dangerous road."

"Thank you, mister. You are quite a help!" Chrome smiled and bowed slightly. Now left along on the pier, she at least knew where to start off to. She wondered about the man who left before she did. Why did he leave without her? She thought Papa had told him to look after her. Well, that doesn't seem to be the case now. With the first step, Chrome started her way deeper into the town. It seemed that her first move was to find more information instead of just heading "north of the town".

Finding herself to be standing in front of a bar, called Star Bar, Chrome looked at the two-story building. A bar is usually a perfect place to find information. The Hunter Exam is rumored to be a dangerous exam; meaning, many dangerous people would be taking it. Opening the door, Chrome found herself to be in such a rowdy room. However, a bell had chimed her entrance. Unfortunately, nearly everyone inside was staring at the child. After all, it is strange for a child to be entering a bar. However, there was an unsettling silence, something Chrome doesn't want. Even with many eyes on her, she didn't leave. Instead, she walked to the counter and sat down the high stool and ignored all those stares of strangers.

The bartender confronted her personally, offering her a drink. "Good afternoon," he smiled sweetly. "Would like anything to drink, perhaps milk?" and quickly followed a question, "Are you meeting your parents here?"

Chrome couldn't possibly tell him that she's looking to become a hunter. That will throw the whole room of angry men in chaos. A child trying to join the Hunter Exam that nearly impossible! Instead of telling the truth, she simply lied with the same false story that she told the sailor. "Actually," her eyes shifted around the room to see if the costumers returned back to their normal, rowdy self before she had entered the bar. Pleased with the volume of conversations raised, Chrome turned back to the bartender. "I need to know where the Hunter Exam is."

Again, the bartender is at disbelief. "W-what? Why would you need to know that for?"

Chrome's patience slowly diminished, but she still remained cool. It's understandable that the sailor and the bartender had asked the same question, but this meant that Chrome needs to repeat herself again. "I'm looking for Papa. He left to become a hunter, and I need to stop him. Mama thinks that Papa will die."

"Really?" the bartender still remained bewildered. "That's quite a task for a young girl such as yourself. How old are you anyways?"

Chrome wanted to click her tongue impatiently. He's just asking unnecessary question, but she complied. "I'm twelve years old. I know it's going to be dangerous, but Mama is very sad. She'll be even sadder if Papa doesn't return."

"Kid," the husky man jumped into the conversation, "If your papa does die, then it's his fault." He scoffed.

Chrome inhaled, pretending to be offended. "But, if Papa dies, Mama might do the same. I, I don't want—if Mama and Papa die, then I'll be alone. I'll have nowhere to go!" the child bit her lips, playing the part of a poor helpless girl. "I, I need to stop Papa, so please. If you know how to get to Hunter Exam, please tell me." Chrome nearly started to shout in false desperation.

The bartender frowned and leaned closer to the stranger. They started to whisper to each other. It really didn't matter that they are whispering. Chrome could hear them perfectly. Focusing solely on their voice, she was able to listen in.

"I know how to directly get to the Hunter Exam, but I'm not too sure if it's a good idea to just tell her." The man next to the child admitted. "However, it doesn't seem like she's going to give up looking for her father."

"This could all be a trap, a lie. This girl might be paid to ask, so she could tell someone what she had learned. I've seen that happened all the time."

"But, she looks like she's ready to look for the Hunter Exam. Her book bag is probably filled with her mother's cooking for the journey." The stranger seemed to believe in Chrome's tale, but the bartender isn't so gullible. Maybe just a little bit more push, he'll give in.

Chrome looked at her lap with a sad façade. "Papa, please be careful. I, I don't want to be alone." She said softly, but still loud enough for the two men to hear. Looking over to the two, she stood up from the stool. "I'm sorry for bothering you two." Taking a bow, she apologized. "I'll just look for Papa myself. I was just hoping to get just a little bit of a lead. Have a good day, and thank you." Chrome gave one last sad smile.

A long heavy sigh escaped from the husky man. Chrome sneaked a smirk. Good, he's giving up. "Okay, okay," he turned around to stop the girl from leaving. "Come with me to the back, I'll tell you where to go."

Chrome turned around with widened eyes. Her black eyes nearly startled to sparkle in gratitude. "You will, mister?"

"Yeah, but there're too many ears around here. Come." He stood up and went into the hallway where the bathrooms were located. Entering one of the unisex restrooms, he gestured Chrome to follow him. Of course, she complied. This does look quite strange in someone's eyes; to see a grown man entering a bathroom with a tiny child. Strange, indeed. However, it doesn't matter to Chrome. All she need was the information, and information was waiting for her in the bathroom.

Once they are both inside, the larger man kneeled down to the child's height and stared at her intensely. No matter how intense the stare got, it didn't phased Chrome. She just looked at him with curiosity as she tilted her head a bit. "Look child, I know the Hunter Exam is very dangerous, and you know it too. I will tell you how to get there. Once you do what I say, you'll be led into an underground room and wait until the exam starts. You will wait for your father in that room. If the exam started and your father didn't show up, you give up on finding him. He's probably dead then. You do not—I mean, do not follow the examiner or the group. You leave the room the same way you went in. Do you understand me?"

Chrome slowly nodded. Even though, she had no intention of leaving the exam. "I will not follow the people if the exam starts."

"Good," the man seemed satisfied with her reaction. "Now follow me. I'll lead you to the hunter exam." He smiled.

"Wait, what?" Chrome stepped back a bit shocked. Follow this stranger? "You know where the Hunter Exam is?" He nodded in response.

"You don't believe me?"

"N-no, no, I don't."

He smiled widely. "You're right, I don't know," the man stood up. "However, I'll tell you an advice. I've taken the Hunter Exam a few times already; failed all those time. Lucky for me, I haven't died yet. Every single time, the exam entrance locations have moved, so I don't know. I know where to start. Would you like to follow me?" Suddenly, this whole turn of event made it unclear for Chrome. What should she do? This man could just fairly be a murderer, leading a young girl into an alley and rob her dead. However, Chrome could easily take care of him, if it comes to that.

Chrome shook her head with unease. There's probably better luck if she asked another person. Earlier, this man clearly said he knows the direct entrance to the Hunter Exam, but now he lied. He's just there smiling widely at her. "Where do we start?" Chrome asked now with more caution than before.

"We head east of the town." The man simply answered. East? The sailor said north of the town. This half-naked man is either lying or heard false rumor. Chrome nodded slowly at him; though, there's little to no chance of trusting this man anymore. "So are you coming with me?" He asked once more.

With a smirk, the child replied with a simple no and left the restroom. The man attempted to grab for her, but she was already out the door before he could touch her. With a loud bang from the door, Chrome stumbled to the bar where the brute costumers were. "H-help!" she screamed defenselessly in hope for a large commotion. "That man—he, he tried to hurt me!" Every head turned towards the bathroom, waiting for the man to burst out. Once he did, the door slammed open with large amount of force.

"Where's that girl?" he snared. Chrome scurried to the exit in fear, but haven't break eye contact with her "assailant".

"Hey! What do you need the girl for?" one of the brute costumers stood up, confronting the half-naked man. The rest of the room disorderly yelled in encouragement. A few people sitting near the door tried to comfort the girl, while the rest of the people started to badger the lone man.

"He, he tried to hurt me. I don't know what I did wrong." Chrome choked in fear, pointing at the assailant. "Please, he's scaring me." Now the whole room started to stand and confront him even more aggressively. Now Chrome who stood alone at the door smirked at her chaos she had created. Without even a word, she opened the door with care, remembering that bell being hung at the top of the door. Skinny as she is, she slipped through the exit and ran away after her escape went perfectly.

**Author's Note: **Thanks for reading the first chapter of Assassins and Thieves. This story mainly revolves around Chrome. As you read along the chapters, you will find out her strengths and weaknesses. I hope you stay with me along this journey. As always, please review. I don't know if what you read is the same as what's going on in my head. I want to know how Chrome is being portrayed in your mind. Many more thanks for those who do review.


	2. Chapter 2

Assassins and Thieves are the Same

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 02**

Now that Star Bar was clearly a waste of precious time. Though, Chrome was able to snatch a few wallets along the way out; that half-naked man and the two others who tried to comfort her during the commotion. Placing them in her book bag, she started to jog north. That sailor earlier seemed to know more than the man in the bar. Unfortunately, she could probably have gotten more information out of the bartender, but the other man lied, saying that he knew the direct way. Chrome sighed and evaluated her performance at the bar as she took that jog. The little trip to the bar wasn't a pickpocket fest, never meant to be. It was just to obtain some information on the Hunter Exam. Chrome wasted at least thirty minutes in there, and left with only three wallets.

Chrome didn't really have a reason to anger the people in the bar. There was no reason to run out the bathroom door in panic. Such unreasonable action, Chrome sighed. _Papa would have been so disappointed_, she thought. Jogging straight, the girl realized that she has no real destination. That really needed to change soon. No matter how many times she would ask around the town, she doubted that there'll be one person who knows where to get started.

Sooner or later, she reached to what seems to be the town's square. There're a lot more people around than when she was near the bar. With nowhere to go, Chrome decided to sit down on a nearby wooden bench. Instead of just wandering around, it's better to just watch and observe the civilians. There's a reason why she came here. Perhaps, it's the closest town to the Hunter Exam. There will be bound to have at least some people here who are looking to become a hunter. All she needs to do is just watch and observe them; just to see where they're heading.

It didn't take too long to see a handful of men who all wore nasty cheeky grins. Tiny scars marked a few places on their skins. Staffs, daggers, and swords were hanging from their hips and backs. It doesn't take a genius to categorize them as thugs and brutes. They're most likely on their way to the Hunter Exam. It wasn't a secret. They're nearly informing everyone about their plan.

"The Hunter Exam will be so easy!" and more obnoxious statements were made from the group. Chrome felt unease if she follows them. Not because they look dangerous. They don't even look dangerous at all…just stupid. There's a possibility that they have been fed misinformation. If that's the case, then Chrome would have waste so much more time. However, there's still a chance that they are going to the correct path. There's no real harm if she does follow them.

After the group of five thugs had vanished pass a building to the north, Chrome had finally weighted the pros and cons, and came to the decision to follow them. Though, she still needed to take precaution while stalking them. Slowly she walked behind the group, making sure she's at least two streets behind them. If they're as dumb they look right now, then the thugs would not be able to notice the child is stalking them. The vague instruction from the sailor is to walk to the north from the town.

After two hours of walking in the town, they have reached to the end of the town. However, they didn't stop. There was a single path leading to a different area. Chrome decided to take the risk to follow the applicants out of the town. Yet after few hours of walking, they haven't shut up for even a minute. They continue to laugh and ridicule the Hunter Exam. Chrome hasn't gathered a lot of information about the test she's going to take, but everything the thugs had said it's probably the opposite. The only real information Chrome got out of them was their destination is to a hole near the foot of the mountain. To be honest, she could just leave with that information. However, she kept a mind to continue to stalk them.

Soon the group of applicants had reached in a what-seems-to-be an abandoned town. A rural area has nothing but dust being swept across the cemented ground. The emptiness felt really unease to the child. There should be a reason why there's no one here. The town looked quite strange. Ever since entering the area, there's just one straight path. No turns, just a long road of houses and apartments. Something is clearly going on here.

Slowly travelling behind the group, Chrome stopped just a couple of yards away because they had stopped at the end. They were confronted with another building blocking their path just like a dead end. When the group has reached the building with confusion, two old ladies had appeared from two buildings from the sides. They were rolled out behind strange wooden booths. There was several of awkward silence. No one said a word. The thugs were just speechless, which is quite rare.

"Welcome to the Two-Choices Quiz!" the two elders said in unison. "We shall ask you a question. Answer correctly; you shall pass!" They pointed to the two wooden doors on the blocking building. It seems like the road ahead is just pass the building. Chrome slowly approached behind the thugs, curious about the two elders. It doesn't matter to her if the thugs know that she had been stalking them to this run down area. As the thugs finally realized that they have been stalked by a little girl, the two ladies started their quiz. "One of these two doors is the correct door." The left one had said.

"Choose the correct one, and you may pass." They alternated their turn to speak a sentence of the riddle.

"You can only ask one question to only one of us."

"However, one of us only lies, and—"

"the other speaks the truth."

"Choose wisely," the two elder ladies spoke together for the final line.

The group of thugs were screaming and cursing at the two ladies. "What kind of bullshit is this?" one screamed. "How are we supposed to know?" another asked. They're kicking and screaming like a bunch of children. Chrome sighed at their stupidity, but the riddle sunk into her mind. _One of us lies and the other the truth. Two doors, one question, one answer. _Chrome swore that she heard of this riddle before. Not because she read it in a book, but her father had once asked her that. She forgot the right answer was. _One of us lies. The other; the truth. Two doors. One question. One answer._ Chrome cursed at herself mentally. She knew it. Of course she knew it, but it just slipped her mind. One question to ask. That question. That's the key to the riddle, but what's the question?

"Hey bitch!" One of the thugs cursed. Chrome looked up to see what the five thugs are going to do. They do have five chances, since there are five of them. Stupidly, one of the thugs had a sword against one of the guardians' neck. "Which one is the correct door?" he asked.

"The right one," she simply replied. There was no hesitation or worry.

The thug with the sword grinned. "Come on guys, the right one." He opened the door that lead to darkness. Chrome couldn't see what's behind the door. However, she could tell that the door was not the correct one. No way is the answer that easy. It isn't about which door is correct. It's about how you came up with the answer. There's no guessing in this riddle. It's either you know it or you don't; and the thug doesn't know it. Two of the thugs followed and entered the door on the right. After several seconds, there were faint screams coming from the other side of the door.

"Holy shit! What the fuck what that?" the remaining three asked in shock. The rest of the group badgered the quiz makers. Instead of listening to their insults and whines, Chrome had noticed a faint presence coming from the back. Turning around, the girl found a boy behind her just a couple of feet away. Did the boy follow them here? How long was he following? Why didn't Chrome notice this before? The boy had silver hair and had a skateboard tugged under his arm. Once the boy realized that Chrome noticed him, he just smirked. The girl walked closer to the boy, curious about him.

"How long have you been following?" she asked, not trying to assume he was following her alone, or the group of thugs.

"A while," he shrugged. Chrome carefully scanned him from head to toe. Silver hair, baggy clothes, a skateboard. He doesn't seem like a traveler. Is he also trying to become a hunter, too? He doesn't look too prepared for it. Chrome shrugged the needless comments on the strange boy.

The roars of the thugs caught Chrome's attention again. The remaining group got over the death of their friends quite quickly. "Well if they died in that door, then this door should be the right one." One of them tried to apply logic to their situation. He asked the other guardian, "so this is the left door the correct one?" The guardian just nodded her head. "Okay, let's go." The brute opened the door, and the rest of them followed in. Just like before, within several seconds, their screams could be heard faintly.

"Hmm, I guess they all died." Chrome mumbled to herself, but the boy just had to comment her.

"Well of course, they're that stupid," he said with a monotone voice.

"Do you know the answer then?" Chrome challenged him, but he just shrugged her question off again and walked towards the two guardians. Chrome followed right behind him.

Once the two children are standing next to each other, the two guardians repeated the same question again in the same exact way, like if they were just a recording. "One of these doors is the correct door. If you choose the correct door, you may pass. You can only ask one question to only one of us. However, one of us lies, and the other speaks the truth. Choose wisely." After the question was repeated, it didn't help the nagging feeling that Chrome knew the answer, but she just forgot it. However it didn't seem like the boy next to her know it either. He was in a deep concentration.

"So you don't know it?" Chrome asked.

He looked up at her with a frown. "Do _you_ know it?" The boy was clearly mocking her. Now she needs to answer it. No way, she's letting him go with that.

"I knew the answer, but" she paused, not too sure if she should tell him, "I can't remember it."

He just scoffed at her. "So you're useless." He sighed, hanging his head in depression. "A riddle is preventing me from taking the Hunter Exam. Unbelievable." The boy mumbled to himself.

"Maybe we should work together," Chrome shrugged a suggestion. It never really hurt to work together; maybe only for temporary. "We could list the questions we can ask them, maybe?"

"Ask what?" the boy rolled his eyes. "What color is my underwear?"

"W-what?" Chrome nearly choked at his ridiculous question. "N-no, no! Not those kind of question." She sighed, rubbing her temple. This kid is a difficult one. "Questions like," she paused to think of a good example, "which door is the wrong one?"

"Well that won't help since we don't even know which girl is lying, stupid." Again with the insults. "The lying one will pick the correct one, and the other one will pick the wrong door. That'll get us nowhere."

"Help me think." Chrome sighed in frustration. "I know that's not the correct question. It was just an example."

"Okay, okay, bossy" the boy mumbled under his breath. Chrome could still hear it, but decided against it to reply back. That'll just start another argument, and that won't really get them anywhere closer to the answer. "We can't ask them which one is lying. We wouldn't figure out which door they would choose." The boy pondered on a little bit more on his statement. Chrome could nearly see gears working inside his head. After several seconds of thinking, he gasped as he reached an epiphany. "I got it! If I ask which one is lying, then you can ask which is the correct door! Genius, right?!" He suggested it so proudly.

However, Chrome seemed to have a different opinion on it. "That wouldn't work."

"Ehh, why not?"

"They might change answers; like the lying one would change into the one telling the truth when I ask." Chrome thought about it a little bit more. "Since they said we can only ask one question, we can answer it with only one question. We just need the right question."

The silver haired boy sighed in frustration. "Let me ask them if they can change position." He turned towards the ladies to ask, but Chrome had grabbed his arm before he could.

"Don't. They might think that is your question. One of them will still lie to you." The girl paused. "Just let me think. I just need to remember the question."

"Why do you always have to ruin my plan?" he mumbled to himself again. Chrome just smiled at his poutiness, and continued to focus on the riddle.

"Ask for the correct door, and which one is lying at the same time." She mumbled out loud. "Which door, which one? Which door is the other one?" So close, Chrome could just feel it on her though. She already has the pieces; she just needs to piece them together.

"Which door and other one," the boy repeated after her._ Which door and other one! Which door! Other one!_ _Oh! Oh! I remember it!_

"I remember! I remember" Chrome shouted happily. "Which door would the other one would choose!" the boy just stared at her as she clapped to herself in joy. It's clear that he didn't understand what's going through the girl's mind. "Which door would the other guardian would choose?" Chrome repeated again this time with his hands in hers. She hoped that he would figure it out by himself now with the answer.

"Which door would the other one choose?" he repeated. Chrome waited a couple of seconds to give him a chance to think about it. Once the answer clicked to him, a wide smile grew on both their faces. "Yeah, yeah! That would totally work!" Chrome grinned widely with him.

The question is which door would the other guardian choose? The lying one will point to the wrong door, since she'll be pointing to the opposite of what the correct guardian would choose. The correct guardian would choose the wrong door, since that's the door the lying one would choose. So the two children just need to choose the opposite door!

With large amount of confidence, the two children approached the front door. They both looked at each other with large smiles. "You get to ask, you're the one who solve the riddle." The silver haired boy offered while having a hint of blush and gratitude. Chrome nodded in agreement.

The black haired girl turned to the old lady on the right. "Which door would she choose?" Chrome pointed to the lady on the left. The two old ladies smiled.

"Left." She simply replied.

"Then the correct door is the right one." Chrome pointed to the suggested door.

"Correct!" the two quiz makers said in unison. On cue, a third door had opened up. Instead of opening upon the blocking building, the door was located on the building to their left. Two large doors slid open, revealing a path to the mountain.

Once satisfied with their job well done, Chrome looked at the silver haired boy. "We got it right!" she couldn't stop grinning. Her hand stuck up, waiting for a high five from the boy. He complied with her gesture. With a loud clap, they had officially passed the Two Choice Quiz. "Thank you for your help!" Chrome turned to the two old ladies and bowed politely.

They both gave her a toothy smile. "Follow the path and you shall encounter a hole. Good luck on your Hunter Exam!"

Chrome thanked them again.

"Why do you do that?" the boy asked, as he dropped his skateboard and skated just a few feet in front of her and through the sliding doors. Chrome shrugged at his question and followed quickly after her new partner. "Whatever."

"You know, you have to admire them." The old lady on the right chuckled as the door closed. "The two children had answered what most adults couldn't."

"Well, that's all part of the whole teamwork, sister." The left lady agreed.

"They have quite a bright future together." They smiled. "They'll achieve a lot together."

**Author's Note:** Thank you for reading Chapter 02 of Assassins and Thieves. I'm not too sure if this chapter was quite entertaining. However, you've get to see a certain silver haired boy that we all know and love. I'm not too sure if I got Killua's personality on the spot yet. I'm working on it. If you notice anything strange that Killua would not have say or done, would you please tell me? As always, please review. Every review will receive many thanks. If you have any question or anything to say about the story, you can PM me. I wouldn't mind the extra thoughts and feedback. See you on Chapter 03.


	3. Chapter 3

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 03**

Passing through the doors, the two children walked silently together. Well, the silver haired kid was on his skateboard, but he was sliding slowly next to Chrome. However, he didn't get far. Soon the two children had reached the beginning of a forest. With a dirt path, using the skateboard was really inefficient. The boy got off his skateboard by kicking it up and grabbing it in midair.

"Showoff," Chrome sighed, rolling her eyes with a faint smile. "I never got your name. I'm Chrome." She introduced herself quickly.

The boy looked over to her. "I'm Killua," he replied. The girl just nodded. There wasn't much to talk about right now. For a while, there was an awkward silence. None of them know what to say. What would Chrome talk about to this stranger of a boy? What would the boy say to the stranger of a girl? Their eyes just wandered off, staring at anything except to the person next to them.

"Man, this is so boring." Killua groaned, as they walked for twenty minutes in silence. "Hey, Chrome. Talk to me."

"Talk about what?" Chrome raised an eyebrow at him.

"I don't know." He shrugged. "Anything?"

"Okay, how long were you following me before?" That question had been nagging Chrome for quite a long time. How could she not notice someone stalking him?

"You're still asking about that?" Killua rubbed the back of his head. "I don't know. About an hour, I think; when you were about to leave the city. Why do you want to know that?"

_An hour? _Chrome really hadn't been paying attention to her surroundings then. "Well wouldn't you want to know how long someone has been following you?" She answered back with another question.

"I guess you're right." The boy half agreed. "How long were you following them?" He referred to the group of thugs earlier.

"A long time, probably for three to four hours." Chrome looked up at the sky to see the position of the sun. However, the large trees of the forest were in the way. The sky was getting dimmer. It should be around 4 or 5 o'clock. Within an hour or two, the sun should have gone down by then. Hopefully, the two children would have reached to that hole before the sky gets dark. It'll be very dangerous to venture on a barely visible path at night. "They never did turn to look back."

"Well, neither did you." Killua smirked. "I guess you're not that smart either."

Chrome pouted her lips. Another insult she had to endure. It was technically her fault that she didn't realize she was being followed. She sighed as she realizes the numerous mistakes she made just in one day. "Yeah, yeah, but I solved the riddle. You wouldn't be here without me."

Killua scoffed. "I just need more time to think. That's all." He turned away.

There were a couple of more minutes of silence before Chrome asked him a question, "Say, Killua. How old are you?" It's another question that had been bugging her for a couple of minutes. She didn't think it was common for young children like her to be taking the Hunter Exam. If it wasn't for her father, she wouldn't even know a thing being a hunter. Chrome was so sure that she'll be the only child there; and to think that she would partnered up with a boy that's roughly the same age even before the Hunter Exam.

"I'm 12." He replied without much care.

"Wow, same age." Chrome mumbled softly to no one in particular. "Who would have thought?"

"W-wait, you're 12, too?" the boy asked in shock. "I thought you were younger, like 10 or 11!" He laughed.

"Ten or eleven?" the girl coughed at his comment. "H-how? What made you think I'm that small?" she folded her arms in a bit of anger. Chrome couldn't tell if Killua was just teasing, but he's laughing more than he was supposed to. "A-anyways," she tried to change the topic quickly, "do you think there'll be another kid there just like us?"

The boy just shrugged. It didn't really matter to him if there's another kid there. "Who know?"

"If there is, we all should stick together." Chrome smiled hopefully. It would be really cool if there's another kid with the same age. "We will rule the Hunter Exam! Show all those adults what we're made of."

"Just don't drag me down." Killua smirked.

"Same to you, too." Chrome followed the same suit. It's not like Chrome doesn't believe that Killua is strong. She just hasn't seen his strength yet. In fact, she doesn't know much about Killua. They've only met for twenty minutes, but his cockiness must have come from somewhere. Chrome just hoped that he can back that confidence up.

The cold winter wind suddenly picked up and became more noticeable. Chrome shivered silently with her arms wrapped around body to protect her from that biting cold. Killua looked at the shivering girl, "Why are you even wearing a tank top in the winter?"

Chrome's hands started to rub against her bare arm to create a small sense of heat and warmth. "I thought there'll be quite amount of exercising during the Hunter Exam. If I do wear more clothes, it'll be hotter, and since I'm not a boy, I can't really take off my shirt if it gets too hot and sweaty."

"What about that bandana around your neck?" Killua pointed out. Chrome tugged the top of the red striped bandana she had on. "If that's your reason for having a tank top, your bandana wouldn't be there."

"Oh this," Chrome chuckled to herself. "I have it so people won't see my necklace underneath. Really silly reason, I know. I just don't like people when they stare at it. I usually have it on when I go out."

"Really? Just for a necklace?" Chrome could sense him judging her, but she ignored it. "What's so special about that necklace?"

"It's important to me," she placed a hand on top of the bandana where the black chocker would have been. "It's the first gift that Papa gave to me." _Yes, the first gift that he gave me when he took me in._

"That father of yours must be important to you."

"Yeah, without him I wouldn't be here." Chrome said softly. "Papa is the only one who told me to take the Hunter Exam. Everyone else told me not to take it, but Papa trusts me to take it and to pass it; so I will." She said with confidence. No matter what obstacles the Hunter Exam may give her, she'll overcome it.

However, Killua seemed to think the opposite. He laughed. "What kind of father let their daughter take the Hunter Exam?" Chrome frowned to his reaction. Why is she even telling this stranger a boy about her father? Maybe she shouldn't have been so buddy-buddy with him after all. He managed to insult her about four times in the past 30 minutes. Maybe he's just a regular jerk.

"What about you, Killua?" the girl looked over at the boy as he looked like he's almost finished with his laughing. "Why are you going to take the Hunter Exam?"

Killua started out with a shrug, "I don't know. I've heard the Hunter Exam is hard, and I was bored; so I just want to join."

"And what about your parents?"

"Oh," a grin started to appear on his face. "I don't think they know that I'm going to take the Hunter Exam. I ran away from home. I didn't want to stay there any longer. I don't care what they think." He shrugged so carelessly. So he's a complete rebel. Chrome didn't really know what to make of it. After all, she's been under her father's wing for as long as she could remember. She wouldn't dare to disobey her father.

Chrome looked up at the sky again. It wasn't too long since the last time she looked at it; however, it did get dimmer. It should be roughly 5 o'clock right now. The sun should almost be down since it is winter now. Chrome looked worried. "Hey, Killua. Do you want to jog there? It's getting darker." It's probably better if they had started to run in the beginning anyways. They don't know how long the road will go on for.

"You're getting scared of the dark?" The boy mocked Chrome again.

"Yes, I'm _so _scared," she decided to joke a bit. "If it gets too dark, we wouldn't be able to see the path. We could be walking in the forest for the next three hours for all we know."

"Yeah sure," Killua started with a light jogging pace first. "Let's go."

Chrome nodded and jogged right beside him despite the heavy book bag dragging her down just a little bit. They continued to jog in silence for a while; after 30 minutes, they realize that they're not going to reach the foot of the mountain any time soon. "It doesn't seem like we're going to reach the hole before the sun goes down at this rate. Could you run?" Chrome asked.

"Could I run?" Killua laughed. "Okay, let's race there. Loser has the buy the winner any snacks they want for a week. You game?" he had such a mischievous grin.

"Of course," the girl accepted the challenge with a smirk. Within a second, both the children burst with speed down the dimly lit path.

**Author's Note:** Thank you for reading Chapter 03 of Assassins and Thieves. To be honest, I had trouble writing this chapter. The original plan is to have mainly dialogue between Killua and Chrome. I didn't think it would be too exciting of a chapter, but I thought it was necessary to help you, the reader, to understand Chrome a little bit more. As you can tell, Assassins and Thieves is a slow story. I hope that doesn't deter you from reading on the future chapters. If you haven't checked it out, I have drawn a tiny picture of Chrome for a few viewers who wished to see it (the link is on my profile). As always, please review. You'll receive many thanks if you do.


	4. Chapter 4

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 04**

The forest passed by like a blur. Nothing resembles a tree or a branch anymore, just a massive blur of hundreds of different shades of green and brown. Yet, the two children were able to fly through the forest with ease. They ran in silence side by side. In that silence, Chrome started to evaluate her action previously when she first met the stranger boy, Killua. She wasn't planning on befriending him, but for some reason, she stayed close to him. She could've left him alone to solve the quiz by himself. She could've solved it herself quietly. It wasn't necessary to allow him to become a baggage to her. Though, he have yet to prove to be an extra piece of luggage, but what made Chrome friendlier towards the boy? She could've easily lied to him and be on her way.

Chrome told him several details about herself that she wouldn't tell a stranger. Why did she talk about her father to him, and the necklace? Why did she even ask for his name and age? It didn't really matter to her. So, why? Chrome constantly questioned herself with that single question. "Why?"

"You said something?" Killua broke her thoughts.

Chrome gave a double take at the boy. "Oh, it's nothing." She just gently smiled at him. "I, I was just thinking. That's all." Chrome bit her lower lips. There she goes; talking more than she needed to. She could have just stopped at "oh it's nothing," but she decided to add a little unnecessary extra. Frustrated with herself, Chrome sped up just a little bit.

After running for some quite time now, the sun had officially set. Even though the sun had set, the path wasn't completely hidden. The thousand stars and a shiny half-moon were shinning on the path bright enough for the two children to see.

"Maybe we missed the hole." Killua frowned at the idea, breaking the silence. "We've been running for quite a while. This is probably four hours of walking if we're running at this pace."

"No, we didn't miss it." Chrome said straight out. There's no possible way they would have missed it. With both their eyes, they wouldn't have. They should've asked the two old ladies earlier how long it would take. Now they're just running in a forest aimlessly. Why couldn't she think of that earlier? Maybe just a couple of more minutes running, they'll reach it.

Just as Chrome though, the trees started to clear. The two children could see a clear field just a couple of meters away and a black circle at the ground. "Is that the hole?" Chrome squinted trying to make out the dark circle. She glanced over at Killua. He seemed to be smirking at her. Oh, this is when the real race starts. Chrome smirked slightly and picked up her pace. The two children burst with speed through the end of the forest.

As they got closer the circle, the hole became bigger visually. Chrome couldn't see Killua in her point of view, assuming she got this race in the bag. No matter how much she would love to turn around and check on the distance between them, Chrome shouldn't be consumed with curiosity. The distraction would just slow her down, possibly making her lose the race. A race is a race, not matter how petty the reward is. All she needed to do is to reach the edge of the whole.

At the final few seconds, Chrome could see Killua at the corner of her eyes. She had to slow down. If she speeds up to beat him, she might as well fall inside that hole. However, the boy's speed didn't seem to decrease. Was he planning on jumping down or fall in? The two children reached to the edge of the hole nearly evenly, but Killua made an attempt jump inside.

Forgetting about the race all together, Chrome grabbed the back of Killua's pale lavender shirt and pulled the boy back before he was out of reach. "What do you think you're doing?" The boy fell backwards and looked up at the girl in confusion.

"You didn't jump?" he asked as if she was supposed to jump into a large hole without even examining it. Chrome just stared at him in disbelief. Was he really just going to jump into a hole that could possibly be his grave? "Why didn't you jump?" he asked again.

Baffled at the boy, Chrome's mouth opened and shut a couple of times, mimicking a gasping fish. "W-why did I jump? First of all, we don't know a single thing about this hole. There could be spikes at the bottom of the hole. This hole could be a mass grave, if people just jump into it without a second thought like you. We don't even know how deep this hole is. Why would I want to jump into a hole without knowing what's inside?" she rambled to him, but he doesn't seem to be listening.

The hole is quite massive; roughly two meters in diameter. However, the moon couldn't shine inside the hole, so there's no telling how deep the hole is. It is quite strange. The hole is perfectly circular and so neat. There could be many reasons why this hole is made. It could be a trap for a predator. The prey, humans or animals, would jump inside or fall inside by accident. Trapped in a hole, they only can just wait in panic for the predator to come and devour them. Being so late at night, the prey wouldn't be able to see the hole and just fall in, or human curiosity would get the better of them. Either way, Chrome is definitely against going inside that trap. Killua seem to have a different idea.

The boy stood up from the floor with his head lowered. Chrome couldn't see his eyes due to his silver hair covering it, but she did see a growing smirk from him. That is not a good sign. Chrome backed away from the boy slowly, "No, don't!" But it was too late. Killua made an effort to grab her wrist and jumped down the hole. Being pulled, Chrome had no choice but to fall down with the boy down the large hole.

It wasn't long before they reached to the bottom of the hole. The heaviness of Chrome's book bag had pulled her down quicker and landed with a loud oomph. Unable to withstand the heavy pull of the bag, Chrome had landed on her bottom. Killua landed gracefully after her and looked at her. "Wow, are you that fat?" he chuckled to himself.

Unable to find the same humor as him, Chrome stood up, rubbing the numbness away. "Ow," she whined softly, glaring at her reckless partner. "Why would you jump in?" A sigh escaped from her lips, "You know what? It's not even worth it."

Chrome looked up at the sky to check how far they've fallen. It wasn't really deep; it's roughly the height of a one-story building. Chrome's fingers slid across a part of the wall, examining it. It was completely dry and compacted. This hole had been here for quite a while. Most dug out hole should be wet, especially when there is a forest a couple of feet away. Chrome touched the ground, too. It has the same feel to it: dry and stable. It's like standing on concrete. Smoothed out and flat. There's just too much work placed into this hole. It can't just be a predator's trap. The height is too short to be a real trap. Chrome and Killua could easily get out of it.

It should be related to the Hunter Exam, but how? Is it just another test for them? Will there be another examiner or someone coming? Chrome plop down on the dirt floor again. They're not getting out anytime soon, or rather they shouldn't. Someone will come sooner or later. The quiz makers guided them to this hole. There's something bound to happen in this hole and the two children just had to wait.

Killua looked over at her, curious. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting," a simple reply, but it answered the question.

"Waiting for what?" Killua came over and towered over the girl with his hands in his pants pocket. Seriously, he hasn't figured it out yet?

"Someone," one word reply still works. Chrome doesn't want to explain. It doesn't seem worth it. They could be waiting together for ten minutes, an hour, maybe a whole day. They don't really have much choice. Leaving the hole wouldn't really have any gain or make any progress. Their best bet is to sit down and wait. Killua joined in the waiting game; he sat down right next to his companion.

"What happened to not jumping inside because we don't know what's down here?" Killua leaned against the solid dirt wall. "Now you're just going to take a break here?"

Chrome looked to her right at the boy with a bored expression, and sighed. "It doesn't matter now since we're down here already. We just have to wait for one of the testers to come and test us." She closed her eyes, planning to rest until there's a change of events. She was ready to rest for a good two hours, but Killua seemed to have a different plan.

"Say, what's in your bag? It was pretty heavy when you hit the floor." Killua started a conversation. Chrome's eye peaked open at his question.

"Nothing much, just weights and a game boy."

"Weights?" the boy looked at the brown backpack. "Why are you carrying weights?"

"Training," Chrome said it as if it's common knowledge. "What else would it be for?"

"How heavy is it?"

"I don't remember." She placed a few fingers on her lips, attempting to remember the answer. "I think Papa said the book bag is about 200 kg in total and these weights are 10 and 25 kg." Chrome put out her wrists and legs. There are metal cuffs around both her wrists and ankles. "Something around there." To be honest, Chrome has it on for since the beginning of the week long boat trip. It doesn't weigh heavily on her shoulders now. This training didn't all of the sudden started once she got on the boat though, the extra weights are usually constantly on her.

"Can I try it on?" Killua asked. "I just want to see how heavy it is."

The 12 year old girl frowned at the idea and refused his request. "Sorry, Papa said I can't take off the weights, only when I shower and sleep on a bed. Other than that, I can't."

"Ehh, how boring." Killua sunk lower, sliding down from his seat in boredom. "Do you always listen to your father? That's all you talk about."

Chrome looked down at the lowered boy and pondered on his words. There's nothing wrong with following Papa's orders. Who is he to judge the bonding between her and her father? Instead of reply back to him, she stayed silence and clung onto her knee.

"Seriously, what kind of father tells his daughter to become a hunter?" Killua repeated again, but he didn't stop, "And on top of that, he told her to wear 300 kg of weights! It's kind of asking for a death sentence, if you ask me. You train _for_ the Hunter Exam, not _during_ it." The boy looked at Chrome for any sort of response with a smile on his face, but he only saw her neutral black eyes, no emotion at all.

"Well not everyone can have a normal father like yours." Chrome replied. It's not like Chrome hates her father. In fact, she loves him. To be honest, he's quite normal father. He just wish that his daughter is strong enough to defend herself.

"Psff, my father, normal?" Killua burst out laughing. "He's way far from normal!"

"I guess both of our fathers aren't normal." A small smile appeared on Chrome's face as she pulled her knees closer to herself. "I'm just curious, why isn't your father normal—"

In the mist of the lighter conversation, Killua and Chrome noticed that change of events they were waiting for. The ground started to vibrate softly and the sound of digging came closer to them. "I guess the wait is over." Killua smirked, getting up. Chrome followed the same gesture, pulling herself up from the hard ground.

"Be careful. We might have to fight whatever is coming our way," Chrome warned. Both children were able to pinpoint the direction the sound and vibration were coming from. "But, we shouldn't jump into conclusion first."

"You know, you're still so bossy." Killua joked with a light smirk and a fierce glaze.

After a few minutes, the thing finally reached to the hole that Killua and Chrome were waiting in. It dug a hole and became visible for the two children. The thing was a human-size mole. It seemed to be in a state of panic. It looked at Killua and Chrome, turning its head back and forth rapidly.

"H-help!" The mole thing talked! "M-my wife is trapped in a landslide! H-hurry, please!" The mole quickly made a U turn and traveled back inside the dark tunnel it created, expecting the two children to follow it.

_That voice, it sounds familiar._

**Author's Note: **Thank you for reading Chapter 04 of Assassins and Thieves. There was more talking in this chapter than I intended to, whoops. Anyways, I do hope you enjoy reading this. As always, please review. Any feedback or interaction will be bottled up and shipped to Gon and Killua. See you in Chapter 05.


	5. Chapter 5

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 05**

There's a possible chance that the time is 7 at night. The only thing Chrome and Killus was able to see is a tunnel with a talking mole. It begged them to follow it, to aid it. Chrome and Killus both knew that it's a test, but not what kind of test it was. Is it just a trap for all the hunter applicants to be buried deep into the ground? Is it a trap for the mole to separate the two children and kill them one by one? Maybe it is just a talking mole that needed help to unbury its wife from a landslide. The two children didn't know, but they know only one thing: they have to follow it.

Killua and Chrome looked at each other in confusion. The boy just shrugged at her, and proposed, "Let's go. We're not getting anywhere if we stay."

Chrome nodded in agreement, but there's something that bugged her. "You know, it'll be pitch black inside the tunnel." The two children jogged into the dark tunnel, trying to keep up with the rushing mole.

A hand was constantly scrapping against the moist dirt on the tunnel's wall as Chrome blindly followed the scurrying sound of mole's digging. The whole tunnel is completely moist with wet dirt. This tunnel has recently been dug out. Thinking about it, Chrome shouldn't be dragging a hand on the wall. She didn't know if the tunnel is only one way or if the paths could split into different paths. If Chrome kept going left by hugging the wall, she might get separated from the mole and Killua. That wouldn't be the ideal situation now.

"K-killua, where are you?" Chrome stuttered as her hand is removed from the dirt wall.

"Over here," his voice replied just to the right of her. Slowly, Chrome shifted towards the voice. They're not far apart, maybe a few feet. "Are you doing okay?"

"J-just keep talking," Chrome asked. Instead of trying to use her eyes, she closed them. There's no use for them now, so she rather just block the sight scene out now. Focus on sound and touch.

"Why?" Killua responded with a short question, but instead of waiting for an answer he started to talk to the mole a couple of feet in front. They are able to keep up with him even though they're in complete darkness. "Hey, mole. How far is that landslide you were talking about?"

"U-uhh, it's by the mountain. J-just a couple of meters away." The rusty voice replied front the front. "P-please, my wife needs our help. H-hurry!"

Getting closer to Killua, Chrome tried to pat onto the boy, seeing if he's really there. With a soft touch, she was able to identify his arm and grabbed onto his sleeve. Surprised by her gentle touch, the boy jumped back ready to attack anything. Chrome flinched back. She should've at least warned the boy before taking a hold of his arm. "Killua, it's me, Chrome. We should stick together like that." Once Killua calmed down, the girl wrapped her left hand around his right wrist. "If not, we might get separated." Chrome only heard a subtle grunt from him, but he didn't protect her action.

A few minutes had passed by, but there were no sight of the end. Killua and Chrome seemed to be able to navigate through the dark pretty well. The mole was ahead by a couple of feet, digging the passageway to the so-called landslide. Through the silent jog in the dark, Chrome had a firm grip onto the boy as she thought about a nagging thought in the back of her mind. That mole, its voice sounded very familiar. She is certain that she had heard its voice somewhere recently, possibly heard it earlier the day. She just can't remember where.

"Hey, Killua." Chrome whispered over to the boy, asking for help. "I've heard that mole's voice somewhere today. I need to remember where. Can you talk to him for me, until I remember where?"

"Huh?" the boy got puzzled by the sudden request, but he complied. Killua called out to the talking animal, "Hey, mole."

"A-ah, I haven't you told my name," the mole turned around in the mist of digging to face them; even though it's completely black. "You can call me Tanuku. What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm Killua" The boy took over the introduction for the both of them, "and she's Chrome. So we've been in this tunnel for a while, how far away is that mountain?"

"J-just a couple of minutes." The mole replied with a stutter, "We're close by."

"You said a couple of minutes a couple minutes ago. Are you sure we're close by?" Killua questioned the credibility of the underground animal.

"You don't believe me?" The mole's hoarse voice sounded hurt and offended, but that didn't stop him from digging.

_Wait! You don't believe me? I've heard that phrase with the exact same voice, _Chrome thought. That rough voice, where have she heard it from? However, she's sure that she heard that voice earlier the day. Just have to retrace her steps. She was on that boat for a week, but it's definitely not from the ship. She heard enough of those irritating men and their seasick stomach. Then it was the sailor after the ship. His voice was much softer than that rusty, sandpaper voice that came from the mole. The bar, perhaps, he was in the bar. The only person Chrome heard was from the bartender and that man who tried to misguide her.

It took Chrome a few seconds to make that click. It was the man who said he knew where the Hunter Exam is and lied, but why is he a mole? Isn't he a human? Perhaps it is a creature that can transform itself into a human. There are many mysterious creatures that inhibit this world, so it's not so surprising that the Hunter Committee might have set up such strange creatures as testers, or whatever they're called. Anyways, now that she knew the creature who's leading them in a black tunnel, Chrome had a slight advantage than she does ten minutes ago. This is all a play, and that man from the bar is the "real" mole. She knew that he is a bit softy for children. That mole will not lead these two children towards death. Perhaps if they were adults, that'll be a different story.

Killua and the mole were still talking about their destination. From what Chrome heard, their destination is just a few meters away for the fourth time today. The boy next to Chrome was getting slightly impatient. She could tell by the slight tense in his voice and the muscles tightening in his arm that she was still holding on.

"I swear I'm going to kill this mole if we don't get there within five minutes." The boy mumbled to himself, but Chrome was able to hear him with the limited distance between them.

"If there is a landslide, it should be on the surface, right?" Chrome questioned the mole. "Why are we still underground?"

There was a slight nervous laugh coming from the front. "W-well you see, m-my wife. She was in our bedroom, a-and the ceiling collapse on top of her."

_Bedroom? Ceiling? Sounds completely human._ Chrome thought. Perhaps he's more used to being a human than a mole. "But, Tanuku, you don't have a wife."

"What?" Killua and Tanuku asked in unison. Chrome heard the mole stop digging and felt the silence stare from Killua. "W-what made you say that, Chrome?" the mole asked.

A smirk grew on Chrome's lips. She got him. Now his story will crumble. "Well first one all, you didn't object. Your first reaction should be 'what are you talking about? I do have a wife.'" Chrome pointed out. It's not direct proof, but it's just a planting the bombs onto his story. "You should be defending your wife, not asking about my statement."

"T-that doesn't answer my question." The mole stuttered. "Why did you think I don't have a wife?"

Again, he didn't state that he has a wife. "Well if your wife is really in a landslide, you shouldn't have stopped digging." Chrome pointed out another acting flaw of the mole.

"Where are you going with this, Chrome?" Killua butted into the conversation. "Does it matter if he has a wife or not? We just have to get him to tell us where the Hunter Exam is."

Chrome looked at Killua, or at least in the general direction. "He could be leading us further away from the Hunter Exam right now. We need to get him to stop digging. We all know he's lying about the landslide and his wife." Chrome turned back to Tanuku. "Tanuku, I'm sure you remember me, right? The girl from the bar." She asked a rhetorical question. "Well, I remember you." A smirk grew on her face. "You didn't have a wedding ring. You weren't married. So tell me, Tanuku, do you have a wife?"

"You know him?" Killua asked.

"Yeah, I just remembered." Chrome answered, "I'll tell you about it later."

The girl waited for the mole to answer her question, but all he did was laugh, but it wasn't a cheerful laugh. His rusty voice sounded evil and menacing. "You did good, Chrome, so observant. You figured me out. However it will be your downfall." The mole finally agreed to his trickery. "You're all trapped underground in the dark. No way to escape. I can just kill you two and no one would ever know. I am the master in this tunnel. I can see unlike you blinded children…"

As Tanuku continued his rant, Killua stepped forward, and Chrome had to let go of his wrist. A second of brief wind, the mole stopped talking. It was choking and hacking. "Look mole, lead us to the Hunter Exam, and I don't have to kill you, okay?" Killua's cold and soulless voice was heard from the front. Chrome guessed that he had the mole against the tunnel's wall with his hand pressing against the furry throat. "You are nothing compared to me."

The mole chocked more as his hand pressed harder. "Stop it, Killua." Chrome blindly walked forward with a hand against the soggy dirt and the other waving around hoping to find the two. "He's probably the only one who can take us to the Hunter Exam."

"S-she's right." The mole managed to choke out. "Y-you two passed. I-I'll take you there."

Within that second, Killua let go of the mole, and it coughed violently to recover its breath. "Wow, Killua. So evil." Chrome chuckled, as she was able to find the boy's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Tanuku, if that's your real name. I couldn't control Killua here." She bent down and tried to help the mole up, but instead of touching its fur, soft human skin took its place. Shocked by the surprising texture, Chrome flinched away. "Oh, you're human again."

"Yeah, well there's no point on hiding it anymore. You'd figured out my whole plan." The adult male stood up by himself. "Let's go back to the surface. I'm sure you're all stick and tired of this tunnel. I have a house just above here. You guys can take a rest. I'm sure it'll be better if we walk in the morning."

"I'm not really tried." Killua shrugged. "But, I rather get out of this tunnel."

Chrome agreed with a smile.

**Author's Note:** Thank you for reading Chapter 05 of Assassins and Thieves. Sorry it took so long! My homework had dragged me into its dark and scary tunnel, and I had to climb out of it just to write this chapter. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoy writing, but do you know what makes writing more enjoyable? You guessed it! Reviews! Did you guess that Mr. Human-Mole was the man in the bar earlier or did you forgot all about him? And as always, please review! All those who review will get many thanks and possibly something a little bit special. *cough*every 10 reviews will receive more than just a thank you*cough*


	6. Chapter 6

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 06**

It wasn't too long before the group of three popped out of the ground. Killua and Chrome sighed in complete relief once they saw the night sky shining brighter than usual. Chrome had never missed the moonlight so much before in her young life. A cool breeze passed through to relief the stress that was built up during the underground event. The human-mole Tanuku didn't have a change of reaction. Though, he did seem more comfortable above ground.

"My house is not far from here. We could rest for the night and I'll take you to the Hunter Exam entrance in the morning. How does that sound?" The human offered. "It'll be a long walk, and you two must be tired from your journey here."

"I don't really care," Killua shrugged in response. The two turned to Chrome for her reply, but she gave the same response as the boy.

"A dinner and a good night sleep would be great before the exam. There's still time before the deadline." The adult insisted as he started to walk to his house. The two children didn't give a direct answer, so Tanuku decided to take it upon his hand to decide for them. All Chrome wanted to do right now is to wash her hands. They were covered in dirt. She tried to dust and pat the wet ground off her hands, but it wasn't completely effective. She could sense the dirt on her hands that only water can wash away.

As the group walked in silence, Chrome thought to herself. She's still trying to wrap the idea that Tanuku is actually the man from Star Bar. What is the chance of that happening? Very small, yet it happened. Tanuku did know the way to the Hunter Exam. If Chrome didn't decline his offer earlier, she could have been at the Hunter Exam by now. She didn't have to deal with stalking that idiotic group, answer that quiz, meeting with Killua, and walking blindly underground. She might even arrive at the Hunter Exam before _him_. Chrome bit her tongue in embarrassment of her action in Star Bar. That man was a ticket to skip all these tests, but she had declined it and stole his wallet. His wallet! Had Tanuku realized that his wallet is missing? If he had, he should have figured out that she's the one who took it by now.

"Hey Chrome," Killua attempted to snap her out of her thoughts. Chrome shook her head lightly in response. "We're here. Stop spacing out."

Chrome frowned in the thought of Killua ordering her around, but quickly ignored it. They did stop in front of a wooden cabin. It looked like a typical cabin that you would expect in the woods, like someone's vacation house if they are interested in hiking.

"Welcome to my home!" Tanuku welcomed us as he pushed the entrance to lead the children instead. Realizing what this looks like, Chrome immediately had her defense senses up. Two children in the woods entering a isolated cabin in the woods with a suspicious man. Ideas started to intrude her mind. What if he is just luring them inside a death trap? He could attempt to kill them as they sleep. Perhaps even cook them for dinner. Though Chrome highly doubt that would happen, she's sure that she and Killua would be able to handle Tanuku. From what she saw underground, Killua could manage himself quite well. He was able to pinpoint the exact location of the mole and had him choking in a tight grip in total darkness. Perhaps he is a cat of some sort that allowed him to see perfectly well in the dark.

Chrome and Killua did enter the cabin before Tanuku. The wooden cabin was completely clean. It doesn't have too much in it, but it was well enough for one or two people to live. For some reason, there was electricity running through the house. Lamps, ceiling lights, even a computer was plugged in to an outlet. Chrome won't ask about how he has electricity in his house, but she's grateful for it. For a while, she wouldn't have to be in complete darkness again. The cabin basically has three rooms: a living room and two bedrooms. According to Tanuku, this house doesn't have a bathroom. They'll have to take a natural leak outside if they need to. The kitchen and dining room were all located in the living room at a tiny corner of the house. It seems to have exactly four chairs in a square dinner table.

The hanging clock on the wall had notified the group that is it eight o'clock, a bit later than what Chrome had thought to be. "Wow it's getting late. Make yourself a home." Tanuku pushed the two children deeper into the house and closed the single exit to the house. "I'll be cooking dinner for you." He said so excitedly. "It's been such a long time since I had guests in this house."

Killua and Chrome looked at each other in confusion. The human mole seemed to have different personalities. Chrome was definitely confused, since the man in the bar seemed so much different from this prancing human, but they should be the same person. Does he have a multiple personality disorder, unless he's really that happy because of the children's presences? "Come on, have a seat!" Tanuku nearly skipped to the kitchen.

"This will be a long night," Chrome mumbled to herself as she took a seat on a wooden chair in the living room. Killua followed the same example, sitting in front of the girl.

"So why do you know him?" Killua asked the same question earlier.

"It was really all by chance…" she started. "I was looking for some information about the Hunter Exam and went to a bar." Wait, does she really need to tell a mere stranger about this? It really isn't any of his business that she just so happens to know Tanuku. Well, telling Killua about it doesn't really matter too much. If he wants to know, then he just wants to know. There isn't much of a downside on telling him. It probably just create a stronger friendship and mutual trust. That might work better for Chrome.

"Wait, you went into a bar?" Killua repeated a bit astonished.

"I know, I know" Chrome smiled and chuckled. It's no surprised that he responded the way he did. It surprised the people inside the bar, too. "So as I was saying, I went to a bar. I asked the bartender if he knew anything about the Hunter Exam, but Mr. Tanuku jumped into the talk, saying that he knew how to get there."

"Did you tell him about your father? You're still looking for him, right?" Tanuku once again interfered in the conversation. Chrome choked a bit as she had completely forgotten about the false story that she had made up. Does Tanuku really believed in that story still? Is he really that gullible?

"Looking for your father?" Killua raised an eyebrow suspiciously. "I thought you said he's the one who told you to take the Hunter Exam."

"Uhh, you see…" the girl looked down at the floor, not wanting to look at their face when telling the truth about her father. "I couldn't just say that I'm going to take the Hunter Exam to a bunch of adults. They wouldn't have tell me anything, just 'it's too dangerous for a tiny girl to go', ' you'll end up killing yourself', and things like that. It'll be easier for me if I just make up a story."

"Oh, that's why you lied." Tanuku nodded to himself in the kitchen. "Yeah, yeah, I guess that would had happened."

"I told them that Papa went to become a hunter, but Mama doesn't want him to; so she told me to bring him back home, or at least try to." Chrome continued her story. "Apparently, there were some people who believed in my story."

"Hey, you really are a good actor." The human mole complimented as he cooked.

"So Tanuku said he'll bring me to the Hunter Exam, but…" Chrome bit her lip, not wanting to tell Killua the embarrassing part.

"But, she ran out." The mole finished it. "I seriously would have brought you to the Hunter Exam. I didn't know why you said no. Really stupid idea, if I do say so myself."

Chrome signed with a hint of blush. "Well, I thought you were lying. There was a sailor earlier, saying that he saw many people heading north of the town, and you said east instead. So I thought you didn't really know where it was. That's why I said no."

"But you created a whole scene when leaving! You had a whole bar against me!" Chrome could feel her face heating up as Tanuku pressed more into her story, a story that she doesn't want to face head on. And to make it worse, Killua was sitting in front of her, listening to the whole thing.

"I'm really sorry about that. I don't really know why I did that. I-I just thought it was a good idea." Chrome said softly.

"Wow," Killua laughed. "You're not as boring as I thought you were. Lying and having a whole group of people go against a person." B-boring? Was that the first impression he had on her? Chrome puffed out in anger. "All you do is talk about your 'Papa'" Killua imitated.

"So you two aren't brother and sister, right?" Tanuku asked out of the blue.

Both children faced the host. "No, of course not!" Chrome objected defensively while Killua was having a laughing fit. "What's so funny?" She turned back to the silver haired boy a bit angrily.

Once his laughter subsided, he managed to answer between breaths. "You totally could be one of my brothers!"

"A-a brother?" An eyebrow was raised, "not a sister?"

"Well most of my brothers really do look like girls," Killua shrugged, "Yeah a brother. All my siblings have black hair, just like you, and black eyes. That's why."

"You have silver hair. Why do you have silver hair?"

Killua shrugged. "I just got it from my dad. My brothers and sister probably got it from my mom. I don't know."

"What a strange family." Chrome mumbled to herself.

"Really?" Killua asked, "Your father told you to get a Hunter License. That's not normal either."

"I guess you're right," Chrome smiled. "We do have weird families."

"Hey kids!" The cook called from the small kitchen, "Dinner is ready."

**Author's Note: **Thank you for reading Chapter 06 of Assassins and Thieves. I'm really sorry for the wait. I've picked up Fire Emblem: Awakening for the 3DS, and I've forgotten to update this story. Forgive me *sadface*. Anways, what do you think of the little conversation Chrome had with Killua? Chrome is starting to warm up to Killua. That's a good thing, right? As always, please review. Maybe this time I won't forget to write Assassins and Thieves. See you in Chapter 07. *wink*


	7. Chapter 7

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 07**

It was a miracle that Tanuku was able to convince the two children to sleep together in that single guest room. There were only two bedrooms in the wooden cabin. Both rooms were extremely tiny. It could only fit a full size bed and a tiny nightstand. Tanuku refused to let either children sleep in the living room or in his bedroom. He only gave one option, and the guest room didn't allow even a child to sleep on the floor. Beside, Tanuku said he didn't have any extra blankets. Killua did offer to stay up all night, but the adult didn't allow that.

Unable to break the human mole's stubbornness, Killua and Chrome had to share a single bed together. Chrome and Killua didn't really mind too much sharing the bed, but it was the fact that they are still strangers to each other that made it awkward. They only know each other for half a day max. Sure, they've been through most friends wouldn't have; taking a stroll in a dark forest, jumping into a black hole, holding onto him in an underground tunnel, now sleeping with him in the dark. It's quite a strange relationship to start out with. Who knows how much longer they'll be together for. The Hunter Exam hasn't even started yet.

Killua does seem capable of taking care of himself, or so it seems to Chrome. He walks with confidence with a large amount of smug. During that walk in the underground, the boy was able to grab hold onto the human mole without light and hesitation. Doing that does take a very large amount of skills. Even with the limited time Chrome had spent with the boy, she felt that he would be able to pass the Hunter Exam with ease.

As the children lay quietly on the full size bed each trying to stay as far away as each other, Chrome stared at the dark ceiling able to see quite clearly. Tanuku sent them to bed at ten o'clock. It's roughly the same time; Papa had sent her to bed. Though, there were times when Papa didn't allow her to sleep at all for a few days straight. Papa did say to sleep whenever she could and should because she'll never know when the next time she'll be able to sleep or if she sleeps forever. Chrome closed her eyes, trying to sleep against the wall under a soft blanket. Killua, on the other hand, was unable to do the same.

"Hey Chrome, are you awake?" Killua turned to his side and poked the sleeping girl at her rib cage. The moment his finger made contact, her body instinctively flinched away. A wide grin grew on the boy's face. Chrome's head turned towards the silver-haired boy angrily.

"Yes," she replied with a bit of irritation. "What is it?"

Killua completely forgot the question he was going to ask her, while focusing on the idea that Chrome is a ticklish. "You're ticklish, aren't you?" His grin became more mischievous as he raised both his hands, preparing for an attack.

"What? N-no, I'm not!" Chrome turned her whole body towards him as she stuck her arms out to protect herself. Her eyes viewed Killua's hands. She knew it was over. Killua is definitely going to tickle her. There's no way out of this.

"You're a liar," Killua stated in a matter of fact. "Punishment is tickling!" His hands came faster than she expected. Fast enough to catch her off guard. His hands attacked her sides. Unfortunately, Chrome's defense mechanism against tickling is to laugh and attempt to pry the pale hands away. However, once she pushed a hand away, it came back.

"No, stop" Chrome breathed out with forced giggles. "Please." The silver-haired boy didn't obey; instead he attempted to find out more of her ticklish spots. From her soft side, a hand relocated itself to her neck. Instantly, Chrome tilted her head, trying to block his fingers from touching her neck, but failed. His hand was able to squeamish through the blocked off neck. "Killua, please stop" Chrome begged again. After attempting to push Killua's hands away, she thought to attack him instead. Like a famous saying goes, "A good offense is a good defense."

In the mist of Killua's tickling, Chrome attempted to tickle him. Her hands traveled from Killua's wrist to his waist. Killua saw her attempt in attack, but just smiled. "I'm not ticklish, just so you know."

A frown appeared on the girl's face once she realized that her attack had no effect on the boy. However she didn't stop. Keen on finding at least one of his weaknesses, she savaged his body for a spot that at least got a reaction. Her hands traveled from his waist up to his neck and back down to his chest. Still no reaction though. Killua, on the other hand, had stopped his attacks on the girl to observe her actions. A smirk grew on his face, knowing that it's hopeless for her to find a hint of weakness.

After a minute of assaulting Killua's body, Chrome stopped. "Give up already?" Killua asked, but Chrome didn't respond. Retracting her hands back to her personal space, Chrome refused to look at Killua's eyes. A blush flushed out across her face as she realized what she was doing. How stupid did she look, attempting to tickle the boy? He's still just a stranger, and Chrome is just attempted to tickle him while he just watched her. _So embarrassing. _Instead of facing the boy, she turned over and faced the wall. "What's wrong, Chrome?" Killua asked, wondering about her sudden change of action.

"I-It's nothing," Chrome forced a fake smile, but Killua didn't see it as her back is towards him. "I-I'm going to sleep. Good night." She pulled soft blanket over her body.

Killua wasn't convinced that it was nothing, but didn't press on. Instead, he followed the same suit and attempt to sleep next to a girl. "Good night."

Later that night roughly around 4 in the morning, the wooden cabin was quiet, expect for the winter wind blowing in the background, trying to disturb the sleepers. There was a creak sounded by the floor board of the cabin. Someone is awake in the middle of the night. However, the guest room was dark, and the two children were sleeping soundly side by side. The girl slept on her side as she faced the wall in her sleep. The boy slept the same as her, facing the same way too. If the two children are asleep, then there must one other who's making the floor boards creak.

Tanuku, the host of the cabin, sneaked around the cabin in search of something. Perhaps what he was looking for wasn't in the living room. Why would it? It should be inside the guest room with the children. However, the human mole had made false hope that the girl would have left her book bag in the living room. Once he realized that what he was looking for was inside the guest room, he sighed. He didn't want to wake the children up, but if he wants his belonging back, he must search for it in the guest room. As the adult turned the metal door knob, he pushed himself in very slowly, peering into the dark.

Even as a human, Tanuku has a good sense of vision in the dark. It would be even better if he transformed himself into a mole, but if he were to do that, the floor board would creak even louder with a heavier weight. The room is dark, and not a sound was made. The human mole was convinced that the children were still sleeping soundlessly. The children were closer to each other than he thought they would be. They're practically a few inches apart. To be honest, Tanuku thought that Killua would be sleeping on the floor, or attempt to stay awake. Luckily for the adult, they were asleep. He looked around the small room for the girl's book bag. Easily located, it was at the foot of the bed, leaning against the nightstand.

Tanuku smiled as he found his target. It should be better to search the book bag for his wallet in the light of the living room than in the dark. Grabbing a hold of the leather strap, Tanuku found himself unable to even lift up the book bag. It took him nearly all of his strength to lift it an inch off the floor. "What in the blazing hell is in this—"

"What do you think you're doing?" a voice came from the bed. It belonged to Killua. The boy sat up from the bed, glaring at human mole. "Stealing from a girl?"

"W-what?" Tanuku dropped the bookbag from an inch above the floor board. Due to the heavy weight, the book bag made a large impact on the floor. "No, you got it all wrong!" He whispered, peering at the sleeping girl to make sure the commotion didn't wake her up. Killua sat up, waiting impatiently for the adult to explain his actions. "Y-you see, during that commotion in the bar, she stole my wallet. So I'm just trying to get it back, okay? I'm not stealing from her!"

"_Right,_" Killua folded his arms, clearly not believing in anything the human mole had said.

"Believe me! I can show it to you! M-my wallet, it has my ID in it!" Tanuku fumbled around to get the book bag to open and reached inside to pull out a wallet. Flipping a wallet open, he scan it. "I-it's not in here. Where's my ID? The girl, s-she took it! I swear!" Tanuku's volume increased as he started to panic.

Completely un-amused, Killua glared daggers into his eyes. "Leave," the boy demanded, ready to pounce at the frantic human.

"No, no, Killua. He's right." A sleepy girl placed her hand on Killua's shoulder to pull herself into a sitting position while rubbing her eye with the other. "I did steal his wallet at the bar. It's in there somewhere." Chrome sighed, "You could've asked instead of waking us up in the middle of the night, you know? Killua, can you open the lights?" She motioned the boy for a minor favor, and he complied. Chrome squint her eyes as the bright lamp on the nightstand burned into her sleepy eyes. Though, she quickly recovered and sluggishly climbed over the boy's leg to reach her book bag. Without much trouble, Chrome was able to lift it up and onto the bed, unlike Tanuku. The heavy weight pulled the mattress down.

"What's inside that book bag?" Tanuku asked, surprised at the heaviness again.

"Weights," Killua answered as Chrome searched for three wallets that she had stolen earlier. "Lots of weights." He eyed curiosity at the book bag, still wanting to test how heavy it is for himself. Chrome pulled out the two other wallets, since the last one is in Tanuku's hands. Opening the two wallets, she easily saw the picture of the human mole, as a human and as a mole side by side. Quite a strange photo to keep, but it is who Tanuku is.

"Here you go." Chrome handed over a wallet to him.

Tanuku thanked her silently, but eyed the two extra wallets. "Are these your wallets?"

"No, they're not," she replied casually. "They belong to two other costumers from Star Bar."

"So, you stole them." Tanuku said slowly, surprised on how honest and casual she is. Chrome nodded in response. With a sigh, Tanuku asked Chrome to give him the other wallet. "Here, give it to me. I'll return the wallets to their rightful owners."

The girl handed over the wallet to him without any question or hesitation. Papa always did tell her to treat others with courtesy and kindness when they have something to offer, whether it was a bed to lie down on or a free meal to eat. This human mole had only one thing to offer: the entrance to the Hunter Exam.

"So if we're done now, I'll like to get back to sleep." Killua rolled over, covering himself with the blanket to pretend to sleep. Chrome gave a yawn to indicate her sleepiness, too. Being waken up in the middle of the night does have a strain on her mind, especially when she has to be courteous to the person who woke her up.

"Right, of course," Tanuku realized that it is still 4 in the morning, and he abruptly woke the two children up, "I'm sorry for this incident."

"It's no problem. Just ask, instead of sneaking around. It makes you look really suspicious." Chrome said tiredly, climbing over Killua to get to her side of the bed. "Good night, Mr. Tanuku."

"Good night." The perpetrator closed the lamp and exited the room. Chrome and Killua are left in the dark guest room once again. However, those two children fell fast asleep, because tomorrow will be a long day of walking.

**Author's Note: **Thank you for reading Chapter 07 of Assassins and Thieves. I am so sorry for the two week long wait. I had some trouble with the writing, and had a bad case of writer's block. I hope you can forgive me for making you wait so long. However, I'm curious. Would you like me to speed the story up, or is the slow pace fine? It's been seven chapters and they're still not at the Hunter Exam yet. Please tell me what you think in the review. As always, any advice and feedback is highly appreciated. See you in Chapter 08.


	8. Chapter 8

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 08**

Like said before, today was going to be a long day. Tanuku did say that they will be walking for ten hours to get to the testing site. The group of three started their journey at 8 in the morning. Luckily Tanuku didn't get them lost. It was a ten straight hours of walking. Sure, the adult continuously asked if the children needed a break ever so often, but they declined all of those offers. Killua and Chrome both stated that this is no more than a long walk, and they've walked longer before. Stamina isn't an issue for them. Their large amount of stamina got the navigator even more curious, so a large portion of the walk was questions about them. Chrome just shrugged at the question and simply replied something about Papa and Killua replied the same. Both children were heavily influenced by their father figure.

It wasn't until early evening; the three had reached to their destination. Standing in front of a small building in disguised as a ramen shop, Chrome realized they were in Zaban City. Not completely too familiar with the city, Chrome had her eyes wander around, looking at every tiny detail of the city. What kind of streets did it have? What kind of people live or visit here? What are some of the stands in the market sells? All those things Chrome was curious about. She even trailed away from the group to get a closer look, and Killua had to pull her away from all the window shopping she does. The girl did visit this city once with Papa for about a month or two, but other than that they never came back. Papa did tell her that this city doesn't have a good reputation, especially in the market. There were a lot of stands who tries to con their customers and ripe them off with fake product for expensive prices. However the hustle and bustle of the city is what kept the tourists in. The building is located not too far from the market, but far enough for vastly lower amount of people. With shopping bag in their arms, they wouldn't have time to look at the tiny ramen shop.

"So here we are!" Tanuku smiled at the children beside him, and walked into the tiny shop. It was indeed a tiny ramen shop. Since it was roughly at 6 in the evening, there are barely any people inside. A young waitress greeted them at the door. "Is the back room open?" Tanuku asked the chef behind the counter who's looking at him with a sharp eye.

"What would you like to order?" The chef asked, trying to be casual about it. However his eyes made him look a bit more suspicious.

"Steak Combo that opens your eye to the light." That's quite a strange password. Chrome looked around the restaurant. The waitress shrugged off the fact that she was ignored and is now cleaning a table with a wet rag. "For three people."

"How would you like your steak?"

"Grilled over a low flame, until cooked."

"You could enter the back room." The chef said, taking another sip of his beverage while motioning his head to the left where the backroom should be. Tanuku thanked the chef and guided the two children deeper into the restaurant.

The navigator opened the back door and entered. Chrome and Killua followed in. The room had Chinese interior designs with only one circular table and three chairs. There's no wonder why Tanuku said it's for three people. If it's any other amount, then it would have been a different room. This place certainly doesn't hold over a hundred of examinees. Maybe someone will pick them up and guide them to the correct holding area. "This is where I will be leaving you two. It's been interesting having you." Tanuku shook the two children's hand. "You can always come to me if you need to retake the exam."

"Yes," Chrome smiled at him. "Thank you for everything you've done for us."

Killua sat down on one of the three seats. "Yeah, see you around."

"Good luck to the both of you, and please be careful." The navigator left the room with one final warning.

Chrome sighed in relief and sat next to Killua, but the room started to elevate down as soon she sat down. Wobbly, Chrome nearly fell over her seat, but manage to maintain her balance using the table as if the table was drilled onto the tiled floor. "Oh it's an elevator." She mumbled, "Of course, it'll be an elevator."

Leaning back onto the chair, Chrome closed her eyes, taking a short rest. "You're tired?" Killua asked, watching Chrome's every move. The girl peek an eye open to look at him.

"I'm just relaxed a bit." Chrome replied. "We should be on our top shape when the Hunter Exam starts. It could start any minute now, or in a few days."

"What do you think it'll be like?" Killua asked, leaning forward. Is he starting a small talk? It's quite strange for him to do that. He doesn't seem to be the type to engage in meaningless talks really, but Chrome is obligated to answer him. "You know, when we reach to the bottom floor."

The girl closed her eyes for a moment to picture the upcoming scenario. "Since we are going underground, it'll be like a damp large room waiting to be filled. Loads of men and maybe a few women just stared at us as we exit the elevator and snicker at us for being kids. But, soon after, the room will be very quiet and tense, like someone died in there. I don't know." Chrome shrugged. "No one is smiling. That's for sure."

"Well that does sound about right." Killua nodded at her answer.

"What are you going to do after you get your license?" Chrome asked. The silver haired boy shrugged again. "You're not going back home, right?"

"Of course not!" Killua folded his arms cross his chest. "There's no way I'm going back there!"

"I'm just curious, but why not?" Chrome tilted her head. "Is it your family? It can't be that you're just bored of the house. A fight with one of your brothers, maybe? Your mother told you to take out the garbage so you decided to run away?"

"It's nothing like that," Killua mumbled, "you wouldn't understand."

"Well of course I won't understand if you don't tell me."

"You know what?" The boy's voice changed into something mixed with seriousness and anger. "I don't need to tell you. Why I left my house is none of your concern."

Taken back by his change of tone, Chrome decided to back down, and for the rest of the way it was just silence in the elevator. Killua turned away from the girl and stared only at the elevator door, hoping it will open soon. Once the elevator reached to Basement Floor 100, there was a loud ding to declare that they have reached to their destination, 100 floors underground. Killua stood up first and exited with Chrome following.

The two children found themselves inside a large dimed room with large pipes decorating the room. Chrome was correct. Everyone who was standing in this room stared at them with a nasty smirk on their face trying to hide a small chuckle, but that didn't last too long. There weren't as many people in the room as Chrome had thought, but she's not counting everyone just to see how many participants there are in this year's Hunter Exam. Chrome and Killua stepped further in and was greeted by a tiny man with a green jelly bean for a head.

His appearance was questionable, but Chrome and Killua didn't question him. Instead, they just listened to the instructions the jelly bean had given. "Please take a card number and attach it to your clothes. Do not lose it." He said, as handing two circular pin buttons to the two children. Chrome had received the number 100 since the instructor gave Killua the button first. As soon as she received it, Chrome pinned the card onto her white tank top. Killua followed the same example.

"Number 100," Chrome mumbled to herself with a smile at the solid number she'd obtained. "So there are a total of hundred people in this very room right now. And Killua is number 99."

"Yeah," he replied casually as he went deeper in the room with Chrome following his tail.

The room was silenced with a large amount of tension in the air. There were shifty eyes everywhere, trying to observe every applicants. A few amounts of small talks were sounded in the room as if it was used to calm the nerves of weaker minded people.

Chrome scanned the room in search for a certain man. The man who boarded the same ship she travelled in. The same man who left her in the middle of a dock. And the same man who she became a little more than just an acquaintance with. There were only a hundred people, and he should be sticking out like a sour thumb. Chrome found him easily, leaning against on a large dirty pipe, shuffling a deck of cards in boredom. There he is, Hisoka! Chrome smiled as she tried to approach him, but was blocked by a short chubby man.

"Oh, there're some new faces I see." The chubby man greeted the two children. "I'm Tonpa, number 16. Nice to meet you."

Chrome frowned at him for blocking her meeting with a certain man, but there should be more than enough time to get through the introductions with this stranger before greeting Hisoka. She glanced at Killua to see if he has enough patience for this man, and then looked back to the man named Tonpa.

"I'm Killua, and this is Chrome," the silver haired boy introduced themselves with a careless smile. On the other hand, Chrome didn't really want to bother with this. It was clear for other people to see. Her eyes wandered around the whole room, not paying attention to the slightly taller man.

"—is my 39th time taking the Hunter Exam. I know"—Chrome heard bit and pieces of the conversation at a time. "—know about everyone taking the exam. If there's anything you want to know, you can ask me!"

"What do you know about Hisoka?" Chrome asked. Finally interested in a small piece of information she could get, she turned back to Tonpa.

"Hisoka?" Tonpa turned around to see who Chrome was pointing to. "Oh, Hisoka, number 44! You know him?"

"He's a friend of mine, I guess," the girl shrugged. "Do you know much about him?" It was clear to her that he is very strong and very mysterious. Chrome wanted to know more about him. More information the better and that boat ride didn't allow her to get to know the jester-like man that much.

"Hmm, Hisoka," Tonpa placed his hand on his mouth, thinking about her question. "He's a dangerous one. Got disqualified last year's Hunter Exam for killing an examiner. I suggest you avoid him as much as possible, really!"

"That's it?" Chrome pouted, placing her hand on her hips. "I already knew that."

"O-oh, really?" The adult forced a laugh. "Last year was his first year, so I don't really know too much about him."

"Aw, how disappointing."

"W-well, let's celebrate our new friendship! What do you say?" Tonpa said loudly as he scoured through his messenger bag. "I've got orange soda for all of us."

Friendship? Is he kidding? They've only talked for three minutes, not even! There's definitely something fishy going on with this man. Chrome looked around the room, and noticed people snickering as they looked at Killua and Chrome. Toma—or whatever his name is is quite the bad news. She should definitely decline that orange soda he has. "I'm sorry, but I can't accept your drink." She waved her hand to decline the beverage as the adult attempted to hand them their cans. "You see, I really don't like sugary drinks." Chrome's eyebrows furrowed into a worried look, hoping that he won't question her.

"Oh, are you sure?" Tonpa asked, while handing Killua the drink.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine. I've got water in my bag anyways," she lied as she looked over to Killua who is opening his can with that nice refreshing sound. "Are you sure you're going to drink that, Killua? If we run, you'll get cramps, or something."

The boy looked right into her eyes and smirked at her, drinking the beverage as if he's taunting her. With a long pause, Chrome just stared at the boy taking multiple gulps. Once he finished, he let out a loud breath of relief. "Man, that felt good!" But, he looked at Chrome and said, "But yeah, this drink is too sugary for you." As a warning for her to not drink the beverage.

The girl looked back at Tonpa who's smirking at Killua with a smug grin on his face. "Thank you for the offer though."

"Uh? Ah," Tonpa turned back to the girl, rubbing the back of his head nervously, "yeah, it's fine."

"Hey Toma, can I have her drink?" Killua asked, still thirsty after finishing his own can. "The walk here was really long, and there were no breaks at all. I don't know how you do it, Chrome."

"It's Tonpa," the adult corrected the silver haired boy as he gave him another can of orange soda. However, it doesn't seem like Killua was listening, or didn't really care what his name was. "You must be really thirsty. If you want more, you could ask me. Well, I'll see you later."

The chubby man exited quicker than he appeared in front of the two children. Chrome and Killua looked at each other and simultaneously shrugged at Tonpa's interaction with them. Chrome looked at Killua's hand for the opened can of drink, and placed her hands on her hips. "Why did you drink it? It could be poisoned or something." She frowned slightly, and her eyebrows furrowed a bit worriedly.

"It doesn't matter to me," Killua grinned smugly again, and took another sip at the potentially poisoned drink. "I'm immune to poison." He looked over at her as if to see a reaction of some sort, but Chrome didn't give him that satisfaction.

"Really? So is it poisoned?"

Killua shrugged, "I don't know."

"Oh," Chrome pouted a bit. She does what to drink it, but it's still not safe for her to. "A bit useless for me," she breathed out silently. He only knows that he could drink it, nothing much more on that detail.

"Oh you want some?" Killua teased as he offered the opened can to her. Chrome sighed with a smile as she attempted to push him lightly with a single hand. Unfortunately, the boy didn't budge an inch. Instead the force pushed her back a bit.

"I hope you get a stomachache!" Chrome stuck her tongue at him and smiled.

"Ha, as if!" Killua continued to drink the orange can.

Instead of waiting for Killua to finish her drink, she thought it would be a good time to meet with Hisoka. "I'm going to see Hisoka for a bit. Don't worry. I'll be back for you." Chrome smiled at the pale boy. He just looked over and simply nodded.

With that Chrome had left Killua's side and attempt to search for her acquaintance. It wasn't too hard since the man was still at the same location since the last time she saw him, leaning against the possibly dirty pipes decorative. The man noticed the girl walking towards him, but decided not to create any attention. However slight smile curved upwards as she approached him.

"Good job on making it here, Chrome." Hisoka greeted once the girl was in close enough distance. Chrome leaned against the pipe next to him to follow his suit. "I see you made a friend."

"Yeah, I guess you could call him a friend." Chrome nodded to herself as she looked at Killua who is roaming around the room. She called Hisoka her friend when talking to Tonpa and Killua. Then Killua should be a friend, too. She knows more about him than Hisoka, and she enjoys Killua's company more. So he should be categorized as a friend. "How did you get here so fast?"

Hisoka smiled at the girl and answered vaguely, "I've walked, of course."

Chrome nearly pouted at his answer. "That's not what I meant," she mumbled underneath her breath. "Did you have to go through the trails, too? Or did you have some secret method of getting here?" She always thought that Hisoka has a vastly large network of information. Large amount of information to get him anywhere he wants. Not only that he has the network, Hisoka is crazy strong. Chrome knows strong when she see it. To be honest, the man's power frightened her a bit, but that's more than enough reasons to try to get to know him, just to get familiar with him.

"Hmm," Hisoka placed a finger on his lips as if he was trying to remember, "I did talk to a few people actually, but I rather not have you know." Chrome sighed at his answer. There's no use on pestering him for a needless answer. She wasn't even sure if Hisoka was joking around or not. "I think your friend is getting bored. I suggest you go accompany him." Hisoka smiled at the girl, hinting her to go away as he pointed at Killua.

"Okay, okay" Chrome smiled at him as she straightened her heavy book bag that feels like nothing to her now. "Have fun with the Hunter Exam."

After leaving Hisoka, Killua is still roaming around the room, but he doesn't seem to be conversing with any examinees. He just looked extremely bored with his skateboard in his hand. Did he not bring anything to entertain himself? Killua did say he came to the Hunter Exam because he's bored, but it doesn't seem to be doing him any good right now. Instead of approaching Killua right now, Chrome thought to observe him. Just watch him to see what he does when he's bored. However, just standing in the room and staring at him would be very suspicious. It'll look quite strange if Killua saw her standing alone staring at him.

Chrome decided to walk around the room and pretending to be looking around the room, but really peering at Killua once in a while. For a few minutes, Killua didn't do anything interesting, just walked around with his skateboard. He didn't even look at the other contestants. Chrome believed he tried to look for someone, perhaps her. Though, Chrome scoffed at that thought. It didn't seem likely that he'll be looking for her, but it does make sense. He doesn't know anyone in the room beside her…and Tonpa.

"Spying on your little friend?" a voice called behind her.

Chrome nearly jumped in shock, but turned around to see Tonpa. She sighed in relief, thanking that it's no one important. The con man approached the girl. "I rather you not say anything about that." Chrome insisted with a frown. "What is it that you want?"

"Ahh, don't be so mean," Tonpa scratched the back of his head. "I'm here to offer you the drink again. I know you were suspicious of me and that can of soda." He admitted, nodding his head. "But you saw Killua drink it. He's perfectly fine, so I grantee you that the drink is perfectly fine, too."

Chrome's patience is running thin for this man. Not only once he tried to trick her, but twice. "I'm sorry, Tonpa. I wasn't lying when I said I don't like sugary drinks. So if you'll excuse me." Chrome didn't give a chance for him to respond. As she turned around, Tonpa placed a hand on her shoulder as an attempt to stop her. Chrome's black eyes narrowed, and her tongue clicked in annoyance as she turned around to face the persistent man.

"I'm sorry. I-I think we got off the wrong foot." Tonpa tried to apologize.

"Chrome! Tonpa! There you are!" Killua's voice could be heard to Chrome's right. Turning to face the approaching boy, Chrome smiled. Thank goodness, she doesn't want to deal with Tonpa any longer. Any moment longer, she swore she'll have his neck snapped. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

Killua stood next to Chrome, of course, with a smile on his face. "Tonpa, do you have another can? I'm feeling really thirsty!" He looked at Chrome with a smirk.

"Uh, yes I do." Tonpa nodded his head as he reached inside his bag for another can. How many does he have, pulling them out one after another? After Tonpa handed over the can, he seemed to be in a hurry. "Ah, I'll see you around." The con man rubbed the back of his head and bowed slightly. "Good luck with the exam." With that, Tonpa left the two children alone.

However, Killua left him with one last note, "Don't. Ever. Bother. Her. Again." His words sent shivers down Tonpa's spine, but the man left without a word.

Chrome looked at Killua curiously, "What was that about?"

"It's nothing, don't worry about it."

**Author's Note: **Ahh, I know you all are tired of me saying sorry over and over again. But, I'm sorry I left you all for two months without updating. Thank you to those who have reviewed saying that they love the story and wishes that I update more often. I haven't forgotten about this story! I will keep writing it. I have so many ideas that I don't want to stop writing. I'm assuming you don't want me to keep saying sorry and thank you over and over again, and want me to start working on the next chapter! I will and I am. Hopefully, next chapter won't take so long. Thank you for reading Chapter 08 of Assassins and Thieves, and always please review.


	9. Chapter 9

Assassins and Thieves

**Chapter 09**

For the rest of the time, Killua and Chrome stayed together as they waited for the Hunter Exam to finally start. There were no clock, no sky, or anything to tell how long the two children been in the dark and damp basement. Once in a while a group of people, probably from the Hunter Committee, arrived from the elevator with carts full of food and water. Killua and Chrome could have been stuck underground for the past two days, or three. No one really knows. However, the endless waiting isn't the most annoying part of staying inside this room. It was the constant dinging of the elevator. So often the elevator dings and someone enters the room. Ding. Ding. Ding. Chrome tried not to think about it, but it always breaks her concentration whenever she hears it. And as always, all the heads turn towards the elevator. The shifting of clothes to the whispers between people annoyed her.

Unfortunately, there was nothing Chrome could do to stop the annoyance of the elevator. All she can do is ignore it and wait for the exam to finally start. In the meantime, Chrome decided to try out Killua's skateboard. In return, she gave him her game boy to play. It was her first time being on a skateboard, but she's pretty sure that she got the hang of it. Moving isn't a difficult task. She just had to kick off the ground to gain momentum, if lost. As for the turning, it's just tilting the board left or right. The hard part is just the balancing part, but Chrome got it down pretty easily. In most cases, she could start traveling on skateboard if she wishes. The only part Chrome have a hard time getting is the tricks Killua could do on it, kicking up the skateboard to catch, spin it and land on it, and tricks like those.

Unfortunately, Killua usually laughed at her for falling and tripping every attempt made. His laughter didn't cling onto Chrome's mind. Though, it did fuel her determination to succeed, and occasionally Killua did give her small advices and hints so she could accomplish her goal. However, she tried to shush him up whenever he did. Chrome was determined to figure it out herself. It shouldn't be too hard.

However, a ringing that sounded oddly like a choking duck was sounded in the room of whispers. Every head looked up and turned to locate the source of the ringing. Assuming that ringing is the start of the Hunter Exam, Chrome had one last chance to attempt to kick up the skateboard. Killua shook his head, doubting that she'll succeed this time. With a strong kick at the edge of the board, Chrome was able to make it go air born. All she needed to do is catch it. Unfortunately, it slipped out of her hand and landed ungracefully on the cement ground. The girl sighed at her failure, and the boy chucked to himself, knowing that she would fail.

Soon the whole room started to migrate towards the sound of a man talking. Perhaps he's the Hunter Exam examiner. Chrome and Killua were idly standing in the back unable to see due to their short heights. Chrome could barely make out any words from him. Everyone else around them seemed to be mumbling to each other.

Chrome picked up the skateboard and handed it back to its rightful owner. "Are you excited?" She smiled at him. To be honest, she is. A challenge to test herself, finally! She's quite tired of walking, running, and waiting. Chrome turned towards Killua with a genuine smile.

"Finally, I'm getting bored of waiting and watching you fall on my skateboard."

Chrome stuck her tongue at him for his unnecessary comment. "You've got my game. You shouldn't complain too much."

"Come on, the group is leaving without us." Killua pointed out that all the examinees are leaving the room and through a tunnel. According to the whispers, everyone was supposed to follow the examiner, Satotz, to Phase Two of the Hunter Exam. Chrome and Killua sighed simultaneously at the idea that they'll still be walking. No matter how mundane it is, endurance test is a good way to weed out the weaklings. Following in the back, Chrome and Killua realized that the pace quickened from walking to jogging, then running. However, Killua took the easier way out and decided to ride on his skateboard.

"Don't worry about me. I'll catch up with you." Chrome insisted. "Beside I like to take a stroll by myself."

Killua shrugged his shoulders and skate further in, leaving the girl behind.

For the next few hours, there was nothing going on except for small talks and loud panting. There were a handful people falling behind and literally falling down. Out of boredom, Chrome stayed at the back of the group and counted the amount of people falling. After those three hours, there was about twenty who fell behind, and there's no sign of stopping. Occasionally, Chrome could see Killua on his skateboard for a second or two, but soon lost in the crowd.

Another participant started to fall behind, a man carrying a suitcase. Desperately panting for air and energy, he nearly tried to hobble to catch up with the group. With his arms swinging like that, he would just waste more energy doing that. That'll be number Twenty One who got left behind. Looking ahead, Chrome saw Killua and another boy stopping, looking at him. She stopped running and stared at the man in the suit. For a few seconds, they just stared at the man panting his lungs out. Chrome thought about jogging to Killua, but the suited man just got up, screamed, and ran. Well, it's back to twenty people. She looked at Killua and the boy. The boy wearing green smiled brightly at the running man. He appeared to be friends with him. Chrome decided to pick up the suitcase that the suited man had left and jogged to Killua and the boy in green.

"So, you know him?" Chrome referred to the man who burst with energy. The boy in green nodded with a giant smile. "Do you want to hold his suitcase?" She asked as the suitcase was handed over to him.

"I'm Gon." The boy introduced himself.

"I'm Chrome."

"Come on. Let's go before we get left behind." Killua pointed out and started running. Gon and Chrome nodded together in agreement, and followed obediently behind the white haired boy.

For the rest of the run in the dimly lit tunnel, the three children held small talks about each other. Chrome didn't really learn anything new about Killua, but she'd learn quite a few things about the new boy, Gon. He is chasing after his father who dumped him with his aunt, Mito, and he wanted to become just like his father. To be honest, Chrome isn't so sure if it's a good idea to use his father as a role model due to the fact that Ging just abandoned the boy. However, Gon was persistent about how great his father is. Chrome shrugged off her idea, since Gon seems like a smart and very kind person. Whenever he smiled, Chrome can't help but to smile with him too. His eyes gleamed with determination, almost as if there're actual sparkles there.

Chrome shared the basic of herself and the same with Killua, why they're taking the exam, how they met, and tiny details about themselves. Killua suggested the idea of another race. A race that Chrome will win this time! Whoever arrives to the Second Phase first, the losers would have to treat the winner to dinner each. In another words, one winner with two separate dinners. Both Chrome and Gon agreed to the terms. Unfortunately to Chrome, she couldn't stay in the back of the group continuing to count all those who had fallen. She'll have to run next to or ahead of the group.

The three kids kept running at a moderate pace. There's no sign of the exit, so they could relax for now and keep a steady pace. In the meantime, they continued to have small talk over random topic; one of them being the introductions of the man in the suit, who is now half naked, and the blond boy next to him. Chrome and Killua learned their names are Leorio and Kurapika. However, Chrome had forgotten their names quickly. She has a habit of forgetting people's name, especially if they never had face-to-face interaction. To her, it's the tall man and the blond boy.

In another hour running up the stairs, Gon, Killua, and Chrome saw the exit of the tunnel. All of them smiled or smirked at each other. Three. Two. One! They jetted up the long flight of stairs, passing by Satotz. After passing the end of the staircase, all three of the children were bickering on who won the race.

"I won!" Gon's arms were shot up to the air with glee, while Killua folded his arm, claiming he won.

"What are you talking about? I got here first!"

"Pff, as if!" Chrome had both her hands on her hip, "I was clearly the winner!"

In unison, the three children turned towards the approaching examiner, "Who won?"

The lavender-haired man looked at all the three children and fixed his neck tie, "I do believe you three all reached the end simultaneously."

The cruel reality had them sighing together in frustration, but that didn't stop Gon from grinning cheerfully. "Then we all buy each other dinners!" Chrome and Killua tilted their heads, questioning on how that would work. "I will buy dinner for you two. Chrome will buy us dinner, and Killua will buy dinner for us!"

"What?" Killua continued to be confused. "That doesn't even make any sense!"

"No, it doesn't," Chrome smiled to herself with a tiny chuckle, "but I don't mind two dinners, really."

"Hey, hey, Mr. Satotz!" Gon called for the examiner's attention, "are we at the Second Phase yet?"

"No, we're just about halfway through." His mustache moved as if it's a replacement of his nonexistent mouth. "Now let's see how many people are here." The adult turned around to the staircase and silently counted the adults who exited the tunnel. Waiting for a couple of minutes, a large quantity of both men and women had completed the first half of the First Phase. Gon's smile lit when he saw his friends, Leorio and Kurapika, arrived together and he went to greet them. Killua and Chrome followed behind him as the enthusiastic boy officially introduced them to each other.

Soon, the whole platform was crowded with examinees, and Satotz decided that they waited long enough and should continue the second half of the phase. "This is Numere Wetland, or also known as Swindler's Swamp. Everything and anything will try everything to kill you. They will use all the tricks in the book so you will fall as prey into their hands. So, please do be careful. Follow me closely to the Second Phase. If you do lose me, there's a high possible chance that you will die in the Swindler's Swamp."

The atmosphere was tense. No one spoke a sound when Satotz was speaking, trying to absorb the very details of his speech. As if on cue, a man who appeared injured came from the side of the entrance. "D-don't listen to him! He's not the real examiner! I am!" an average looking man clutching to his side in fake pain. "That thing over there is the Half Human Ape that looks like a human!" He pulled out a monkey-like figure that strangely resembles Satotz, but Chrome wasn't even slightest convinced that the injured man is actually the Hunter Exam examiner. She scoffed at the idea that some human-ape creature could best the actual examiner. However, the group behind Chrome was filled with whispers of uncertainty. They were nearly convinced by the terrible acting by the imposter.

Thank goodness that someone had intervened with this dilemma. Cards were shot at both the imposter and Satotz. With great ease, the real one caught the cards and came out unharmed; while the fake one had fell to the floor dead. Hisoka, number 44, was the culprit for throwing those cards with intent to kill, but Satotz allowed him go this one time.

With that note, Satotz continued the run into the swamp. Many applicants laughed nervously at the incident with the fake examiner, or the idea of running through a swamp that's filled with those same sly creatures. Chrome followed the crowd, but would rather stay behind the examiner. Killua and Gon followed quietly behind her. Let's hope that all the three will stick together for the run.

**Author's Note: **Bleeh, I know this chapter is boring and so descriptive ( );; I had no idea how to make it more interesting, since they just run! JUST RUN! And you all should know the talking they do in the tunnel...not very fun writing all that down, so I made it very general. I just need to get this chapter out, so I can get to the next one, but it will be more interesting, I swear to that! If not... whoops. As always, please review and see you in Chapter 10.


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